Time to check out a really cool trainer!
Welcome back to Trainer Spotlight! Where we take the time to talk to a really cool Pokemon trainer and fan! All Pokemon trainers have special skills and traits that just make them amazing. So we want take one fan and put the spotlight on them to show why they are an amazing Pokemon fan and just well rounded trainer.
Today we are talking to DozerZigashi, or just Dozer. You may have heard of him from his various different Pokemon podcasts. Currently he is running the Pokemon Champions Podcast where he talks VGC. He has many years of experience within the Pokemon fandom from an observer to podcast. Today we are going to talk to him and his love for Pokemon, podcasting and anything else.
Pokemon Crossroads: Lets start with your first question. Could you please introduce yourself by giving us a short description?
DozerZigashi: “I’m DozerZigashi, a Pokemon Podcaster who likes to pretend to be good at VGC. I’m also an overzealous wannabe living Pokédex with an unhealthy obsession for a Shiny Umbreon named Moonshine.”
PXR: How did you got into Pokemon?
Dozer: As a kid I watched the anime and loved it. I didn’t have video games as a kid, but my parents would occasionally buy me packs of the old Topps Pokemon cards. Which eventually lead me to the Pokemon TCG that I’d play with my dad. And eventually I was able to get a taste of the video games and it was all downhill from there.
PXR: The Topps Pokemon card? I had those too. Even the tin! What was your first Pokemon game?
Dozer: This is a weird one, but Pokemon Colosseum. I played it at a sleepover with my best friend from childhood who I played the Pokemon TCG with at school.
PXR: No wonder you are so found of that game. Interesting. What made you stick with the Pokemon games? Or if you took a break, what brought you back to Pokemon?
Dozer: Whenever I started to get bored with the Pokemon games I found new ways to play them, which just reinvigorated my love for them. When casual play got boring, I got into doing themed runs. Later it was Nuzlockes. Then it was breeding and eventually I got dragged into competitive Pokemon and now my life is ruined.
PXR: Cool. What is your favorite Pokemon? Why?
Dozer: It’s a tie between Umbreon and Arcanine if I’m being honest. Is it cheating to call it a tie? Arcanine has been my life-long favorite but that’s just because I thought he was cool while also looking cuddly and fuzzy. Umbreon is a Pokemon that I became known for when I used it in a competitive Pokemon League where I had a miracle comeback victory thanks to a Shiny Umbreon I was using.
PXR: That is awesome! (Laughs) What is your favorite region and why?
Dozer: From a gameplay perspective I’d have to say Unova because of how much there is to explore. It feels like almost every route has a hidden pathway or something. There was so much I missed on my initial playthrough because of that, which made replaying the games a lot more fun.
PXR: A man with great tastes! I love Unova. Alright, what Pokemon would you like to become? Why?
Dozer: An Arcanine, mostly because I think it would be nice to be a cozy and fuzzy fire doggo.
PXR: What would be your trainer class, excluding gym leaders, Elite Four and Champion, if you were in a Pokemon game? (EX: Lass, Youngester, Team Rocket Grunt)
Dozer: I’d probably be a Pokemon Breeder. I’ve have that dream since Childhood. Mostly because I thought was cool and if Brock wanted to be a Pokemon Breeder then of course I should want to be one too.
PXR: What would be your specialize type if you were a gym leader?
Dozer: It’s a bit of a toss up between fire and electric types. But I’d probably end up going with electric types because then I think I could make a really fun technology based gym challenge.
PXR: That sounds awesome. Which Galar Starter did you pick and why? Were you happy with your pick?
Dozer: I picked Grookey for my first playthrough because it had been a while since I used a Grass starter. I was pretty content with my pick because Rillaboom is a solid Pokemon with an alright design. It’s not my favorite, but it’s not bad.
PXR: What is your favorite Pokemon memory?
Dozer: There’s a lot of good ones, like when my Dad and I would play the TCG with each other a lot as a kid. But I think the most precious Pokemon memory I have with me is of my first sleepover with my childhood friend. That is where I got to play Pokemon Colosseum for the first time. That friend of mine is no longer with us, but I still have that memory and even the Espeon from that save file that I started with him that night all those years ago.
PXR: That is so sweet. Aww…Has Pokemon had a large impact on your life? If so, how?
Dozer: Pokemon is easily the single most impact any franchise has had on my life. And that is 100% because of the people it has lead me to connect with. So many important people in my life are here because of Pokemon. And even now I’m able to find ways to bond with people, and even family, through Pokemon. My Dad and I like to play Pokemon GO together. And my Nephew and I were able to talk about Pokemon when he was younger. It may sound cheesy, but the true gift I have received from Pokemon is quite literally “the friends I made along the way.”
By the way, I’m sorry Mikey to all of the readers you just lost because I said that.
PXR: (Laughs) It is fine. I am sure the ones who are left are loving this. So, what made you decide to become a podcaster?
Dozer: I honestly don’t really know. I remember it was the summer of 2010, before my senior year of High School, where a friend of mine showed me a podcast he liked. My first response to that was “Dude. This is us, like, we could do this.” And then I decided that I was going to learn how to make podcasts. Then later in 2014 all of that knowledge came to use for starting The Boomburst. And now I’m a podcaster.
PXR: Why did you choose to talk about Pokemon when create your various podcasts? What brings you back?
Dozer: It started because Pokemon was the main thing going on in my life outside of school. And I had friends in the same boat, so we decided to start The Boomburst. I liked podcasts. I liked Pokemon. Why not make a podcast about Pokemon? Tl;dr I was bored.
PXR: Out of the various podcasts that you have done in the past, which one was your favorite?
Dozer: Since this is past tense, that eliminates me saying the Pokemon Champions Podcast. So I’ll have to say that The Boomburst was my favorite simply for the fact of how much I learned through that process. There were a lot of production struggles we had with that show, but it was still a lot of fun.
PXR: I see. What are some other shows, games or ect that you are a fan of?
Dozer: I love the Fire Emblem games to death and I’m currently obsessed with Animal Crossing. Minecraft is another game I have sunk way too much time into. For shows, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood and Avatar the Last Airbender are both narrative masterpieces. And my favorite Comic/Manga series is Bakuman.
PXR: Cool. Nice answers. Alright. What are some of your biggest inspirations?
Dozer: I hate questions like this, haha. The thing is, I’ve been a creator in some kind for so long that it’s hard for me to grasp at my initial inspirations…But I think, in the end of it, my biggest inspirations are the people I know who can just do things. Even if it’s a lot of hard work, once they decide they’re going to do something they find a way to make it happen. I find that kind of grit and drive to just sit down and say “I’m going to do this thing because I want to, no matter how hard it is” is something to strive for. Kick reason to the curb and do the impossible (row row fight da powah).
…yes Mikey I’m tired. Please excuse my derpiness and edit this line out of the interview. I swear if this line makes it in I’m going to give you a stern talking to.
PXR: Hey! I appreciate a good Gurren Lagann reference. (Laughs) And no. It is staying in. (Laughs)
How has Pokemon made you improve in your craft? Life?
Dozer: There are so many skills I have right now because they were necessary to develop to share my love of Pokemon in the way that I wanted to. I had to improve in audio editing to produce the Pokemon Champion’s Podcast on a weekly basis. Creating content online forced me to learn how to do graphic design, which–by the way–is really hard for me to do because I have Color Vision Deficiency so I have to rely on other methods to make sure color pallets work and the colors are right.
PXR: That is pretty awesome. Nice. What are your plans for the future? Involving and not involving Pokemon?
Dozer: I want to get a Masters degree in Rhetoric and Composition focusing on the field of New Media studies. My hope is to eventually become a university professor, but in the meantime I’m planning on trying to work in Grant Proposal Writing. As for Pokemon, I really want to get to a live VGC event and try to compete. I know a lot about the competitive scene in theory, but I don’t have much experience putting that into practice. And I really want to fix that with a live in-person events once they resume in the future.
PXR: Any word of advice for new fans or people who wish to get into podcasting?
Dozer: For new Pokemon Fans, I have one piece of advice: have fun. If you’re having fun with Pokemon in one way or another, then keep doing that (unless it’s harmful to yourself or others of course).
Ultimately, Pokemon is a franchise built on entertainment. Even if other people think you’re wrong for the way you have fun with the game, just enjoy doing what you can within the game or anime or collecting or whatever it is you like about Pokemon. And if you don’t have fun or stop enjoying yourself, then just quit. 
There’s no reason to push yourself if you don’t enjoy it.
Now, onto Podcasting. If you want to get into podcasting (you poor soul, you) my #1 advice has to be to have good show notes.
It is so important for you to have a plan for each episode and to know what you’re going to talk about. The ability to improvise takes a lot of experience with both your topic of choice and with podcasting/public speaking as a whole. Zac (the other host of Pokemon Champions) and I have a combined 20 years of experience that allow us to improvise the way we can. Until you have that you need show notes, and even with that you should probably have them anyway. Do as I say, not as I do.
We would like to thank Dozer for taking the time for this interview. He has done amazing things with himself and it shows in his podcasts. If you want to follow Dozer then feel free to find him on Twitter at @DozerZigashi and listen to his podcast, Pokemon Champions Podcast.
See you next time as we focus the spotlight on another amazing Pokemon trainer!
